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Friday, 23 July, 2010
Sunday, 18 July, 2010
Off to the 2nd Paris International Conference on Education, Economy, & Society
Leigh and I are off to Paris later tomorrow. I will be attending the 2nd Paris International Conference on Education, Economy, & Society later this week where Dr. Dennis Sharpe and I are presenting a paper.
Dr. Sharpe and I presented at the 1st Paris International Conference on Education, Economy, & Society two years ago. That paper was published in the Winter 2010 issue of the Canadian Journal of Career Development.
Our paper for this year's conference, "Secondary School On-Line Learners: Tertiary Education Participation and Perceptions of On-Line Learning", will be published in the Quarterly Review of Distance Education this fall.
Friday, 16 July, 2010
Major changes in store for British higher education
From The Guardian:
The government signalled the biggest shakeup of Britain's universities in a generation today, with a blueprint for higher education in which the highest-earning graduates would pay extra taxes to fund degrees, private universities would flourish and struggling institutions would be allowed to fail.
Vince Cable, the cabinet minister responsible for higher education, also raised the prospect of quotas to ensure state school pupils were guaranteed places at Britain's best universities, breaking the private school stranglehold on Oxbridge.
Comparing the existing system of tuition fees to a "poll tax" that graduates paid regardless of their income, the skills secretary argued it was fairer for people to pay according to their earning power.
Thursday, 15 July, 2010
Declining full-time university enrollment in Newfoundland and Labrador
Following on yesterday's post regarding the release of 2008/09 Canadian university enrollment figures by Statistics Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador's figures are down by just over 1,000 students from four years prior. I've plotted the trend in overall enrollment from 2000/01 to 2008/09 below.
If we look to the breakout of full-time and part-time enrollments in the Statistics Canada data, it is evident that the overall decline is associated with a reduced level of full-time enrollment. In fact, part-time enrollments appear to have edged up slightly above 2005/06 levels. 
Wednesday, 14 July, 2010
Canadian university enrollment up, but Newfoundland and Labrador enrollment declines
Statistics Canada has released Canadian university enrollment figures for the 2008/09 academic year.
Overall enrollment across the country is up 3.7% from the previous year with just over 1,112,300 students enrolled. This can mostly be attributed to the granting of "university status" to five colleges in British Columbia in 2008. Without these "new" universities, the enrollment growth would have been just 0.7%.
On the home front, enrollment here in Newfoundland and Labrador was down by 1.1% to a total of 17,322 students. According to Statistics Canada figures, this represents the third consecutive year of reduced enrollment since figures hit a peak of 18,336 in 2005/06.
University Affairs deputy editor Léo Charbonneau makes some additional observations on these enrollment figures over on his Margin Notes blog.
Tuesday, 13 July, 2010
RESP program hampered by lack of awareness
An examination of Canada's Registered Education Savings Plan program (RESP) carried out by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada (CGA-Canada) has concluded that "Canadians are not taking full advantage of the program due to poor awareness and understanding".
With regard to rising post-secondary tuition fees, CGA-Canada notes the following:
With gradual federal funding cuts occurring to PSE programs over the last 25 years, institutions have been raising tuition to recover the loss. The idea of controlling tuition costs with caps or further subsidies also needs to be considered. The current UK system serves as a prime example. Although, they have recently raised tuition fees, they are still making higher education accessible to all students regardless of income status through capped tuition amounts and lenient borrowing conditions. Government essentially relieves the financial pressure off of students allowing them an opportunity to fully concentrate on their educations. Without addressing this issue, RESPs will not be as effective or desirable and rising tuition costs will end up negating any savings. RESPs will become more of a necessity than an advantage; not to mention those without RESPs will be at an even further disadvantage.The full report from CGA-Canada may be downloaded here in .pdf format.
Sunday, 11 July, 2010
The best shoes in the world
From University World News:
Italian universities say they will be unable to pay their staff wages next year as the ramifications of government spending cuts hit home. The institutions face a budget cut of EUR1.3 billion (US$1.6 billion) or 17% of their current budget. Yet Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi seems not to care, declaring: "Why do we need to pay scientists when we make the best shoes in the world?"
The cuts were imposed by Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti in an attempt to reign in spiralling public debt. Confronted with this harsh reality Enrico Decleva, President of the Conference of Italian University Rectors, was left with no option but to admit financial defeat.
"Following these cuts, we will be left unable to pay wages," Decleva said.
The government appears unconcerned. Despite the consensus of economic analysts who say it is necessary to increase investment in higher education and research during a period of recession, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi seems to hold another view, hence his comment about shoes.
Friday, 9 July, 2010
Student summer job market has improved
From Statistics Canada's June Labour Force Survey:
From May to August, the Labour Force Survey collects labour market information about young people aged 15 to 24 who were attending school full time in March and intend to return to school in the fall. The May and June survey results provide the first indicators of the summer job market. The data for July and August will provide further insight into the summer job market. The published estimates are not seasonally adjusted; therefore, comparisons can only be made on a year-over-year basis.
Compared with the same month a year earlier, employment increased by 63,000 in June 2010 for students aged 20 to 24. This pushed their unemployment rate down 3.7 percentage points to 10.3%. Despite this improvement, their unemployment rate remains above that of June 2008 (9.2%), a summer when student employment was particularly strong.
The labour market for 17 to 19 year-old students improved marginally in June, as their employment edged up 11,000 from June 2009. Their unemployment rate declined 2.1 percentage points to 16.0% in June, but remained well above the rate of 11.7% observed in June 2008.
Thursday, 8 July, 2010
Province invests in Train for Trades program
This is an excellent investment decision on the part of the Newfoundland and Labrador government:
Train for Trades, a unique program offered by Choices for Youth that gives young people experience with skilled trades, has received new financial support from the Provincial Government. The Honourable Susan Sullivan, Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment and Minister Responsible for Youth Engagement, announced more than $560,000 in funding today to support the administration of the program in its second phase.
. . .
The first phase of the Train for Trades program began in August 2008. Ten youth were provided basic safety and construction training and then given employment opportunities in the renovation of Choices for Youth’s Lilly Building facility. Throughout the process the participants were provided with supports and guidance that were tailored to their needs. The outcomes were exciting, as six of the 10 participants upgraded their education, four earned their General Education Diploma, four entered into post-secondary studies in the skilled trades, and three found employment in the construction industry. Phase two began this year and involves 10 more youth who have received similar training and are currently working alongside veteran CUPE members to complete renovations to Newfoundland Labrador Housing units.
Tuesday, 6 July, 2010
Glenn Beck launches Glenn Beck University
Is this one of the 7 signs of the apocalypse?:
The man who wants to abolish public schools now aims to educate you.
Chalkboard-crazed Fox News commentator Glenn Beck announced on Tuesday the launch of his own, self-titled online school.
Glenn Beck University "is a unique academic experience bringing together experts in the fields of religion, American history and economics," the former "Morning Zoo" DJ touts on his website.
The fields of study would include topics addressing "Faith, Hope and Charity and show you how they influence America's past, her present and most importantly her future."
Friday, 2 July, 2010
Decision to cut mandatory long form Census must be reversed: CAUT
From the Canadian Association of University Teachers:
The Canadian Association of University Teachers is just one of several organizations protesting the decision announced last week, and wants Prime Minister Stephen Harper to sit down with a group of some of ’s top researchers to hear why the mandatory long form census must be restored.
“As the organization that represents Canada’s academic research community, we are deeply concerned about the disastrous consequences this will have for the scientific understanding of Canadian society, and for the ability to make informed decisions about social and economic policies,” said CAUT’s executive director James Turk.
Turk says the current long form Census is the only source of regular, highly detailed, systematic information on immigration, family and household structure, racialization, demography and other vital information about Canadians.
Thursday, 1 July, 2010
Memorial Day in Newfoundland and Labrador
This University was raised by the People of Newfoundland as a Memorial to the fallen in the Great Wars 1914-1918 and 1939-1945, that in freedom of learning their cause and sacrifice would not be forgotten.-- Plaque inscription, Arts and Administration Building, Memorial University of Newfoundland
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